These days, tennis can luxuriate in more than a month on the grass after three months of sweating out the hard courts of Australia and North American, and two months skidding across the red clay of Europe.
It is all too little compared with days gone by, days when both the Australian and US Opens were also played on grass, but now that honour belongs solely to the oldest of them all, Wimbledon.
Three weeks still leaves a modest window for players to make their adjustments in movement and tactics, and acclimatise to the spring of turf and the skid of balls. But it is better than a few years ago, when the French Open champion hopped on a plane just hours after victory and was practising on Queen’s grass by Monday.
That extra grass week has brought something of a blossoming of tournaments in the schedule, too, from the unlikely venues of Spanish island Mallorca and
Turkey’s Antalya, to the oh-so-traditional environs of English clubs up and down the country.
After the rigours of the first five months on the road, though, how much rest can the top men and women squeeze in before having to change both shoes and mindsets?
Federer: fresh and with a spring in his step
For the first time in his career, Federer opted out of the clay season entirely. This unusual decision certainly had something to do with his start to 2017, a blistering return of uninhibited tennis after six months away, surgery to his knee, and back problems. If a break like that can yield an 18th Major—in Melbourne—and the two biggest Masters in the calendar—Indian Wells and Miami—and from a ranking outside the top 16, maybe another break could work the same magic.
He is, of course, now approaching his 36th birthday, but has made little secret of his desire to win one more Wimbledon, for the All England Club is special to him: seven titles from 10 finals, and the first place he won a Major. Federer is also an eight-time winner in Halle, giving him more titles and more match-wins on grass than anyone in the Open era.
His focus, then, has been to take advantage of the full three weeks to fit in Stuttgart and Halle—though some rusty tennis and wavering focus gave fellow veteran and friend Tommy Haas the upper hand and a three-set win in his Stuttgart opener.
Murray coming home
Andy Murray is second only to Federer on grass: He is a two-time and defending Wimbledon champion, a five-time and defending Queen’s champion, and won Olympic gold at the All England Club.
It has not been an easy year for the Briton after his monumental efforts of 2016 to reach No1, and shingles and an elbow injury did not help. But his semi run at Roland Garros arguably produced his best tennis of the season: He certainly thought so:
“Hopefully this gives me a good base to go into the grass-court season. Often when I have done well on the clay, I feel like that’s helped me a little bit on the grass. Certainly the matches are not as physical, so going through matches like I did today is a good step for me.”
He knows the grass of Queen’s like the back of his hand, so his focus will be on recovery and recuperation: The tennis will follow.
Of Nadal, Djokovic and Wawrinka
Of course Federer and Murray are not the only Wimbledon champions to return to the grass this month. Novak Djokovic has won Wimbledon three times from four finals, and Rafael Nadal has won twice from five finals, and also won Queen’s in 2008 and Stuttgart in 2015.
But the trajectories of these two this year have been rather different. The Serb’s form has wavering through the spring, and he faces this difficult transition from Roland Garros to Wimbledon without his long-standing coaching family. Nadal has stormed victorious through most of the clay swing having already made the final at the Australian Open, despite missing large sweeps of last year with a wrist injury.
He is back to No2 in the world this week and tipped to regain the No1 spot by year’s end. It is remarkable, and while the adjustment to grass has never been easy for the Spaniard, his increasingly aggressive tennis, and a fondness for grass, make him a danger to all this month. He has opted, at the last moment, to bypass Queen’s in favour of rest and recuperation.
Stan Wawrinka, now ranked No3, also had a strong Roland Garros, and can count three different Majors in his collection, all except Wimbledon. He is, though, clearly keen to remedy that, taking on the former coach of Pete Sampras and Federer, Paul Annacone, ahead of his grass campaign. And looking at the full-blooded tennis the Swiss can produce—the kind he played against Murray in Paris—there is every reason to think Wawrinka could tick off the missing Major.
Door opens for returning Major champions Azarenka and Kvitova
Two former champions are out of action through this grass season; seven-time and defending Wimbledon champion Serena Williams is expecting a baby; Maria Sharapova, after a brief return to clay after her doping ban, has pulled out of the grass swing with a hip injury.
Perhaps the first beneficiary will be the evergreen five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams, who lost to her sister in the Australian final and has had some decent result since, too.
But all eyes will be on the return of two impressive champions, Victoria Azarenka and Petra Kvitova.
Azarenka, a two-time Wimbledon semi-finalist, missed last year’s Championships as she embarked on maternity leave. She will make her return in Mallorca next week, and told Roland Garros online:
“It’s not really a comeback for me, it’s more starting a second part of my career. I’ve been training and… I need to go out and play, I need to play matches, I need to be in front of the crowd, so I’m happy I’m going to start playing.”
Kvitova headed back even earlier than expected after the severe injury to her playing left hand at Christmas, and looked in formidable shape at Roland Garros, despite being no fan of clay. She relishes grass above all surfaces, and will take her first step in Birmingham next week.
Can Konta convert? Can Kerber bounce back?
Briton Johanna Konta certainly did not revel in success through the clay season, but her start to the year on hard courts took her to a new career-high of No7 after her biggest title to date in Miami. She also loves her home turf, nowhere better displayed than the tournament in walking distance of her home, Eastbourne: quarter-finals in 2015, semis last year.
But in five years of trying, she has made it past the first round at Wimbledon only once: She lost to Eugenie Bouchard in the second round last year. Her profile has grown substantially at home, and with it the expectations of the British crowd. She has the game: Can she now make the leap on Wimbledon’s grass?
Still bigger questions surround the world No1 Angelique Kerber, who last year won the Australian and US Opens and reached the final at Wimbledon. She is also a past champion in Birmingham and twice a finalist at Eastbourne. Yet this year she has yet to win a title and although she went deep in Dubai and Monterrey, she has clearly struggled with form and confidence.
She holds onto the No1 ranking by the skin of her teeth: Simona Halep and Karolina Pliskova had the chance to overtake her in Paris. Will grass give Kerber a renewed spring in her step? The three women could lock horns as soon as Birmingham, along with other women who have some grass credentials. Garbine Muguruza is a Wimbledon finalist, as is Agnieszka Radwanska, while Dominika Cibulkova was a quarter-finalist in London last year and won the Eastbourne title.
Some new, some not-so-new players ready to run
The exciting 20-year-old Jelena Ostapenko powered her way to her first title at Roland Garros a few days ago, and promptly claimed that she loved grass—and she certainly has the game to take advantage of its slick conditions.
The strapping 6ft 6in Russian, Karen Khachanov, is as confident as the come: witness his demeanour both on and off court in Roland Garros where he reached the fourth round in only his third Major main draw. His huge game should bring big rewards on grass, too.
Grigor Dimitrov, a former Wimbledon junior champion, made the semis at Wimbledon a full three years ago, and showed that same form, after a period in doldrums, to press Nadal to the limit in the semis of the Australian Open this year. He is also a former Queen’s champion.
Nick Kyrgios is in a similar position: a Wimbledon quarter-finalist while still a teenager, and seemingly back to his charismatic best after a see-sawing couple of years. He claimed big scalps in Indian Wells and Miami, and if he believes in himself at Wimbledon, he could claim more there, too.
Dominic Thiem goes from strength to strength, is one of a select band that won titles on all three surfaces last year, and has beaten both Nadal and Djokovic this clay swing—reaching a second Roland Garros semi. If he is rested—and he has taken a rare week off—maybe he can build on that strong foundation.
Alexander Zverev broke the top 10 last month with his first Masters title, one of three titles this year, and made the final on Halle’s grass last year. He is smart, confident, and has plenty of power and net ability—courtesy of doubles play with his elder brother. With a decent draw, he may be dangerous in London.
Karolina Pliskova has made inroads at all her last three Majors: final in New York, quarters in Australia and semis in Paris. Last year she won Nottingham and has been a finalist in Eastbourne and Birmingham. It really could be time for her to step up on grass, where her big-serving tennis should thrive.
Who plays where in grass’s 10 pre-Wimbledon events
W/b 12 June
WTA Aegon Open Nottingham: defending champ, Pliskova (absent)
Top seeds: Konta, Anastasija Sevastova [lost], Lauren Davis [lost], Alison Riske, Lucie Safarova
WTA Ricoh Open ‘s Hertogenbosch: defending champ, Coco Vandeweghe
Top seeds: Cibulkova [lost], Kiki Mladenovic, Kiki Bertens [lost], Vandeweghe [lost], Ana Konjuh, Timea Babos [lost]
ATP Ricoh Open ‘s Hertogenbosch: defending champ, Nicolas Mahut
Top seeds: Marin Cilic, A Zverev, Ivo Karlovic, Gilles Muller, Steve Darcis [lost]
ATP Mercedes Cup, Stuttgart: defending champ, Thiem (absent)
Top seeds: Federer [lost], Dimitrov, Tomas Berdych, Lucas Pouille, Steve Johnson [lost], Mischa Zverev, Gilles Simon lost], Viktor Troicki [lost]
W/b 19 June
WTA Premier Aegon Classic Birmingham: defending champ, Madison Keys
Top seeds: Kerber, Halep, Pliskova, Elina Svitolina, Cibulkova, Konta, Radwanska Mladenovic, Muguruza, Elena Vesnina, Kvitova
WTA Mallorca Open: defending champ, Caroline Garcia
Top seeds: Azarenka, Pavlyuchenkova, Sevastova, Garcia, Bertens, Carla Suarez Navarro, Konjuh, Roberta Vinci
ATP500 Gerry Weber Open Halle: defending champ, Florian Mayer
Top seeds: Federer, Thiem, Kei Nishikori, A Zverev, Gael Monfils, Pouille, Roberto Bautista Agut, Albert Ramos Vinolas, Karlovic, Gasquet, M Zverev
ATP500 Aegon Championships Queen’s: defending champ, Murray
Top seeds: Murray, Wawrinka, Milos Raonic, Cilic, Juan Martin del Potro, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Dimitrov, Berdych, Jack Sock, Kyrgios
W/b 25 June
WTA Premier Aegon International Eastbourne: defending champ, Cibulkova
Top seeds: Pliskova, Cibulkova, Wozniacki, Konta, Radwanska, Mladenovic, Ostapenko, Muguruza, Vesnina, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Timea Bacsinszky
ATP Aegon International Eastbourne: [Johnson won Nottingham last year]
Top seeds: John Isner, Pablo Cuevas, Johnson, Querrey, Muller, Richard Gasquet, M Zverev, Feliciano Lopez, Diego Schwartzman
ATP Antalya, Turkey [first year]
Top seeds: Fernando Verdasco, Paolo Lorenzi, Khachanov, Troicki, Borna Coric, Martin Klizan, Nikoloz Nasilashvili, Hyeon Chung
W/b 3 July
Wimbledon, London